A 1-1 draw with Real Madrid consigned City to a straight fight with Ajax for a place in the Europa League, but when he was asked whether it might cost him his job, Mancini retorted a 'no'.

"No. Why? Why? I think the season is long. You have the Champions League, the FA Cup and the Premier League and if we think we can be champions of Europe after only two years, we are crazy," the Daily Mail quoted Mancini, as saying.

"We started with defeat in Madrid when we were 2-1 up with four minutes to go. After that, everything was complicated. We will still try to get into the Europa League. It may not be as big as the Champions League, but if you arrive in the semi final or final it could be important for us," he added.

According to the paper, Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho also backed his City counterpart over the support Mancini[5] is receiving from club.

"It is good that City are behind him and giving him support. But it is incredible that, with the array of great players at their disposal, City have been eliminated at the group stage two seasons in a row," he said. (ANI[6])